This article is updated frequently as titles leave and enter Max. *New additions are indicated with an asterisk.
Who doesn’t need a laugh these days? Max (formerly HBO Max) has one of the richest and deepest catalogs of any of the streaming services, and so it naturally has the comedy you’re looking for tonight. From classic comedies starring iconic performers to movies that played in theaters recently, this rotating list of laugh generators should have something for everyone.
21 Jump Street
Year: 2012
Runtime: 1h 50m
Director: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller
Phil Lord and Christopher Miller made their live action directorial debuts with this 2012 buddy comedy that really has no right to be as funny as it is. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum star in the adaptation of the ‘80s TV series but they turn it into a charming flick about perception, identity, and the best and worst of high school life. Note: The sequel is on Max too.
50/50
Year: 2011
Runtime: 1h 40m
Director: Jonathan Levine
Will Reiser adapted his own story of battling cancer in a tender, genuine film that ended up being a sizable box office hit given its subject matter. People were attracted to the truth in Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s performance as a young man diagnosed with cancer, and how that diagnosis impacted his relationships, particularly one with a good friend, played by Seth Rogen.
Amelie
Year: 2001
Runtime: 2h 2m
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
It’s hard to overstate how much this Jean-Pierre Jeunet romantic comedy took over pop culture in 2001, becoming such an international hit that it grossed over $170 million worldwide and was nominated for Best Picture. The delightful Audrey Tautou stars as the title character, a waitress who works to better the lives of those around her but struggles to find her own happiness.
As Good As It Gets
Year: 1997
Runtime: 2h 19m
Director: James Brooks
Believe it or not, this is the last movie to win both the Oscar for Best Actor (Jack Nicholson) and Best Actress (Helen Hunt). James L. Brooks’ romantic comedy is a perfect example of a movie that caught its cast at just the right moment, getting one of the last Nicholson performances that could be called charming and supporting it with great work from Hunt and Greg Kinnear. Some of it is a bit dated, but it catches just enough lightning in a bottle in terms of casting to justify another look.
Beetlejuice
Year: 1988
Runtime: 1h 33m
Director: Tim Burton
It’s not very often one gets a sequel almost four decades after the original film, but that’s what’s happening in September 2024 with the release of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. Clearly following closely on the imagery and storytelling from the original – including returning characters played by Catherine O’Hara, Winona Ryder, and, of course, Michael Keaton — the sequel demands you remember the first film. And it’s been a long time. Get to catching up.
The Birdcage
Year: 1996
Runtime: 2h
Director: Mike Nichols
Mike Nichols’ remake of the beloved La Cage aux Folles is a joyous comedy about acceptance and love that still works well today (which is not something you can about a lot of mid-‘90s comedies). Robin Williams and Nathan Lane are phenomenal as a gay couple forced to jump through hoops for their son’s new in-laws, played wonderfully by Gene Hackman and Dianne Wiest. It’s funny and smart from front to back.
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure
Year: 1989
Runtime: 1h 30m
Director: Stephen Herek
It’s really hard to dislike this charming time travel comedy about two underachieving buddies who travel through time for a school project. Keanu Reeves (Ted) and Alex Winter (Bill) are so wonderfully sweet and funny in a film that has held up better than most comedies of its era. Note: The also-excellent follow-up Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey is also on Max.
Barbie
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 55m
Director: Greta Gerwig
One of the biggest films of 2023 has already landed on Max in the form or Greta Gerwig’s daring blockbuster, a comedy that works both as a reminder of the power imagination and the fight for equality. Anyone who thinks this movie is anti-male isn’t paying any attention. The theme of the movie is that no one — not even Barbie nor Ken — should be defined by traditional roles. We should all be free to play however we want. It’s a wonderful film that will truly stand the test of time.
Dear White People
Year: 2014
Runtime: 1h 49m
Director: Justin Simien
This Sundance hit unpacked racial and class issues at a fictional university called Winchester, launching not just a Netflix original series but the careers of Tessa Thompson, Teyonah Parris, and more. It’s a viciously smart movie with scenes that are alternately hysterical and razor sharp in their social commentary.
Dream Scenario
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 42m
Director: Kristoffer Borgli
Nicolas Cage is wonderful in this twisted comedy, the story of an ordinary man thrust into an impossible spotlight. Cage plays Paul Matthews, an incredibly normal guy who ends up filtering into the dreams of others around the world. Suddenly famous, Paul doesn’t know exactly what to do as his reputation as a modern-day Freddy Krueger starts to shift. It doesn’t quite stick the landing, but it’s smart enough throughout to make that forgivable.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Year: 2008
Runtime: 1h 51m
Director: Nicholas Stoller
Nicholas Stoller directed this charming 2008 rom-com that stars Jason Segel as a man desperately trying to get over a recent break-up with a celebrity girlfriend named Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell). To move on, he goes to Hawaii for a vacation, and just so happens to run into Sarah and her new boy toy, played so memorably by Russell Brand that he actually got a spin-off of his own in Get Him to the Greek.
Get Shorty
Year: 1995
Runtime: 1h 45m
Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
Look at me. Barry Sonnenfeld directed one of the best adaptations of an Elmore Leonard novel and anchored it with one of John Travolta’s best performances. Everyone remembers the comeback with Pulp Fiction, but Get Shorty really allows Travolta’s incredible ‘90s charisma to shine. It’s a perfectly calibrated comedy with phenomenal performances all around, including Rene Russo, Danny DeVito, Delroy Lindo, and Gene Hackman too.
I, Tonya
Year: 2017
Runtime: 2h
Director: Craig Gillespie
Who could have ever guessed that the true(-ish) story of Tonya Harding would become an Oscar-winning dramedy? Margot Robbie does some of the best work of her career as the title character, who reclaims her own story through this odd, funny, and ultimately moving character study that won Allison Janney an Academy Award.
Inherent Vice
Year: 2014
Runtime: 2h 29m
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Is this the most divisive movie of Paul Thomas Anderson’s career? Watch it for yourself and see on which side of the debate you fall. Joaquin Phoenix rocks as Larry “Doc” Sportello in PTA’s adaptation of the great Thomas Pynchon’s 2009 novel of the same name. Doc is a private investigator in 1970 who gets caught up in the criminal underworld in Los Angeles, but that might make this sound like more of a traditional thriller or noir than it really is. It’s something distinctly special.
Lady Bird
Year: 2017
Runtime: 1h 34m
Director: Greta Gerwig
The Barbie director’s Best Picture nominee is one of the most personal and striking coming-of-age films in years. Saoirse Ronan stars as the titular character, a young Californian who longs for someplace cooler than her own hometown. It’s a heartfelt and very smart film, buoyed by great performances throughout, including Ronan, Tracy Letts, Timothee Chalamet, Lucas Hedges, Beanie Feldstein, and Laurie Metcalf, who was robbed of that Oscar.
*National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation
Year: 1989
Runtime: 1h 37m
Director: Jeremiah Chechik
A movie so funny that it can be watched any time of year, this family favorite was the second sequel to the comedy classic Vacation. Chevy Chase returns as Clark Griswold, who suffers a wave of setbacks around the Christmas holiday, from annoying relatives to problematic lights to a boss who ends up taking him for granted. There’s a reason this is the Vacation movie that has been the most watched since the franchise was popular, especially during the holiday season.
Parenthood
Year: 1989
Runtime: 2h 4m
Director: Ron Howard
Long before the NBC series of the same name, Ron Howard directed a family comedy inspired by the massive families of the producers, director, and writers. There’s really not much more to it than that simple premise, but it gets by on the likability of its large ensemble, which includes Steve Martin, Tom Hulce, Rick Moranis, Martha Plimpton, Joaquin Phoenix, Jason Robards, and a young Keanu Reeves.
The Player
Year: 1992
Runtime: 2h 4m
Director: Robert Altman
After a rough patch in the ‘80s, Robert Altman came roaring back with his scathing Hollywood satire written by Michael Tolkin. Tim Robbins does his best film work as a studio executive who can’t decide if his biggest problem is at work or the writer sending him death threats. Altman’s skill with improvisational comedy and knowledge of the Hollywood machine blend to make a simply perfect movie, one of the best of the ‘90s.
Singin’ in the Rain
Year: 1952
Runtime: 1h 43m
Director: Stanley Donen
Movies don’t get more delightful than this beloved classic about backstage drama on the advent of the talkie. Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, and Donald O’Connor are as charming as charming can be, and the movie contains some of the best choreography of its era, and not just in the titular number. It’s joyous from front to back. Honestly, you have to be kind of a jerk not to like this movie.
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